A Demon's Escort
by RikuRoyalty
Summary: He really shouldn't have jumped in without his 'Navigator'. How was he supposed to know that he would end up in a different country? And, more importantly, how was he going to get back?
1. Chapter 1

Tsunade glanced over the pile of papers she was now faced with, knowing that they wouldn't get done with her current predicament. The lone paper in the center of her desk was her main worry at the moment and she really didn't want her thoughts to be interrupted with all the extra paperwork.

Not that she would actually _do _the paperwork.

The fifth Hokage rubbed her eyes in frustration. It was a request for an escort mission, which wasn't exactly rare, but this one was . . . special. The pay was _excellent. _So much so that it was suspicious, but it didn't take a genius to guess why they were paying so much. However, there were the political matters to think about regarding this particular escort mission. The other elemental countries may not agree with her accepting this mission.

The Kage leaned back in her chair in thought. _I could always not accept this publicly. But if it were to come out into the open to the other Kages then I would be in more trouble then I already am. _Tsunade took a sip of her now-cold tea and sighed.

_Then there are those old bats who call themselves Elders to think about. They probably wouldn't agree with this, but its not like they get any say for mission requests . . . . . _A smile slowly crept upon the Godaime as evil thoughts started rising in her head at the reaction she would get from accepting this. _If there is a reason to do this mission, then there it is._

It wasn't long until her decision was made, consequences be damned. She would accept the mission.

Now, to think about who should _go. _

Usually she would hand escort missions to some of the Genin as a C Rank, but this one seemed too dangerous. The Demon Kingdom had very little allies, mostly ones that were situated on their boarders. They were very recent allies as well, which was suspicious in itself. Ever since they had crowned their new Maou two years ago, several neighboring countries were eager to sign up for an alliance. That either meant the new Maou was_ really _good at political negotiations or was_ immensely _powerful. Neither ideas sat well with her. She needed someone to go that they couldn't corrupt with whatever tactics the Maou had.

A smile graced her lips as the color orange flashed in her mind.

It was time to send in Konoha's number one unpredictable ninja.

_**~Two days earlier~**_

Yuri knew that he was in trouble when he woke up.

Due to Murata's unexpected cold, the young King had decided to go to the Demon Kingdom alone. Of course, it usually wasn't a good idea to embark on an expedition without your navigator, but, Yuri being Yuri, jumped in without a second thought.

Now that he was awake on a shore, he could tell that he wasn't in the Demon Kingdom. Which was the source of his predicament. He had woken up in a river in the middle of nowhere and didn't see any of his subjects. That was his first clue that he wasn't where he was supposed to be.

"Now . . . where am I?" He asked himself, looking around that the beautifully green forest. It was so green that it almost looked . . . unnatural. A thought suddenly struck the Maou as he started realizing the gravity of his situation, "What if . . . I'm in a human country? Worse yet, what if I'm in an enemy country?"

Fumbling, Yuri reached into his pocket and took out a small container and mirror. He opened the container, revealing a pair of rich brown colored contacts. Using the mirror, he placed each one in his eyes, blinking away access tears and rubbing his eyelids to get them in place.

He couldn't hide his black hair at the moment, but maybe he could get a hat somewhere later. Closing the container and mirror, he stuffed them back into his pocket. It was a good thing that he had worn normal cloths in favor of his school uniform. His beige shorts and blue t-shirt would be a lot easier to explain then him wearing nothing but black.

Looking at his surrounding area, the Maou tried to find a nearby village or civilization. The sun was setting and nighttime would soon set in and Yuri really didn't feel like sleeping outside. Spotting a light in the distance Yuri decidedly walked over in that direction. Hopefully, he would find some people that would help him.


	2. Chapter 2

It took about an hour until Yuri finally reached the light. It was a simple lamp light hung over what looked like an inn. Unsure, Yuri tapped on the door, hoping to get a response.

"Wha- Whose there?" A voice from inside asked, opening the door a crack to peer out. Yuri stood still at the one brown eye glaring at him. "Whaddya want?" it asked, a little grumpily.

Yuri blinked, startled, trying to come up with a cover story. "Excuse me, but I-I got separated from the w-wagon that was bringing me here and now I'm lost. Do you think I could trouble you for a place to sleep?"

The eye looked me over, as if trying to determine if I was worth it or not.

"U-um, I have no money, but I'm willing to work if thats what it takes . . . ." Yuri trailed off when the door came swinging open to reveal an older woman, possible twenty-five to thirty years of age. She had brown eyes and purplish brown hair and was dressed in a kimono of all things, which really threw Yuri off. He was pretty sure he transported himself to another world, so why did it look like he was in Japan?

"Well, come on in, I don't have all night." Sighing in relief, Yuri scurried into the warm inn, trying to shake off the night air.

The woman handed Yuri a kimono, to which he bowed his thanks. "U-um, I'll be sure to pay you back. I can c-clean fairly well and I can cook-" He was cut off by a hand in his face.

The woman sighed before scratching the back of her head, "Don't worry about it kid. We'll talk about what you can do tomorrow. For now, go get some sleep." She handed me a key that said my room number. The language was in the common human language, to which I knew little about, but it gave me some reassurance that this was certainly not Earth. At least I could read numbers in the human language or else I would be in even more trouble.

I looked up at my host and smiled at her. "Thank you very much." She looked startled at my openness but decided to leave it at that. Shaking her head, she went off to a back room, where I assumed she would be sleeping.

I walked up the stairs and looked at the doors that were on either side of hallway. Finding my number, I opened the door to reveal a simple room with a desk and a futon. It was so . . . Japanese. Which was odd in itself, but strangely it helped me feel more at home. I quickly changed into my new Kimono and then took my contacts out. It would be bad to sleep with those in.

Bringing out the futon I stuffed myself underneath it, enjoying the warmth it provided. Looking out at the window I sighed in contentment at sleep took me. In the distance I could swear I heard a chime blowing in the wind.

_**~Present Time~**_

Naruto Uzumaki was _bored. _And his boredom usually came with the torment of pranks to his friends or any unsuspecting citizens of Konoha. Today, however, he was content to training just outside of the village.

Unfortunately, training by himself seemed to only increase his boredom.

"Naruto!"

The blonde turned to his pink-haired friend who was jogging toward him. Naruto stopped what he was doing (having two shadow clones spar each other) and turned to Sakura. "What's up, Sakura-chan?" He asked with a big grin on his face.

The young Shinobi stopped in front of him, pointing to the city. "We have a new mission from the Hokage-sama." The boredom that had seemed through Naruto's head was now gone in an instant. His big grin got even wider as he started running to the Hokage's office with one thought going through his head.

_Finally, something to _do.

Sakura was right behind him, who was soon followed by Sai. The three jumped from rooftop to rooftop until finally making it to Tsunade. Kakashi was there as well, reading what could only be erotica.

Tsunade was sitting in her chair with a thoughtful expression on her face. It was obvious that this mission wasn't normal, judging by how serious she was.

"Before I tell you anything, I need a vow of complete secrecy from all of you." She turned her eyes to Kakashi, who hadn't even moved. "This is a . . . delicate matter to which I hope I can trust you all with." The three shinobi looked at one another before nodding. Kakashi nodded as well, but no one could tell if it was because of his book or because of the Hokage's words. A sheet was passed around that each shinobi signed.

Standing up, Tsunade went over to look out the window. "How familiar are you all with Demons?" Naruto immediately stiffened, a hand went over his stomach almost subconsciously. Sakura winced as she looked at her friend but shook it off. They had a mission to do.

"Do you mean . . .like the Jinchuuriki?" She really didn't know how else to phrase the question.

Tsunade sighed and shook her head. "No, I'm talking about the Demon Kingdom." Kakashi's froze and lifted his head at the mention of the Demon Kingdom. He had not heard that name in many years.

The Godaime cleared her throat turning back to the team in front of her. "The Demon Kingdom is an old and mysterious kingdom South of the Elemental Countries. Twenty-five years ago, they waged war on the countries around them for provoking their villages on the boarder. They won, but afterwards the outside world hadn't heard from them in years." She sighed, running a hand through her blonde bangs. "Two years ago, they assigned a new king. The 27th Maou. Suddenly, all the surrounding countries started making treaties with the Demon Kingdom."

Sakura and Sai's eyes narrowed at that. "So what?" asked Naruto, oblivious as ever. Sakura hit him.

"ITE!"

"You idiot, a Kingdom with little to no allies suddenly getting _every _country they were once at war with to sign a peace treaty and become allies is a _bit _suspicious don't you think?" Naruto rubbed his sore head as he looked at Sakura with a pouting expression.

"Precisely," Tsunade cut in, face sober. This was more serious then they thought. "The Kingdom has hired us to escort their new King. Apparently his . . .transport, as they call it, left him in the Fire Country. We need to find him and bring him home unharmed." Kakashi closed his book, looked at the Hokage with his one eye.

"How will we know what he looks like?" he asked calmly. Tsunade sighed and handed him a photograph. The Jounin stared at the picture, trying to hide his surprise. It was the so-called Maou. He was seated on his throne with a leg crossed and his head resting on his hand. A small smile graced his lips as he seemed to be staring at something far away. The King couldn't have been older then fifteen when this picture was taken. The only thing that seemed to give away his kingly status was his pure black hair and eyes.

The picture was passed around to each member of the group. The only person who was unreadable was Sai, but the look on everyone's face was evident. _Just how old was this Maou? _

Tsunade sighed once again, anticipating this reaction. "I want you all to keep in mind that despite appearances, he could very well be older then me." Every member looked at her with questioning glances, "The Demon race are known for aging very slowly and therefore look incredibly young. It is important that you do not look upon this . . ._man _as a child, it might even offend him. Once again, this is a very delicate mission. While you are with His Majesty I want you to find out all you can about him." She gave a pointed look to Kakashi. "It was also noted that the Maou has a tendency to . . .wander. So please keep an eye on him. Kakashi will be the team leader."

The four recipients nodded, unsure if that part was a joke or not.

Taking the picture, the three younger shinobi disappeared. Leaving Kakashi and Tsunade.

"Two years? Hokage-sama, how does a country go from the brink of war to peace in only _two years_." In some ways, it was insulting. Kakashi had been fighting for some form of peace throughout the elemental countries for the last half of his life and Tsunade had been trying throughout her reign as Hokage. Yet this Maou, this _Demon King _was able to achieve it in only two years.

The Godaime sat in her chair and leaned her elbows in her desk in thought. "I have been thinking about that . . .and I came up with two possible conclusions." Kakashi looked at her with his one eye, waiting for her to elaborate. "Either the King is an outstanding political negotiator or he has something the other countries want."

"Is it possible that they simply fear him?" Kakashi asked with an eyebrow raised.

Tsunade shook her head, "It is, but I doubt they would be allies if that was the case. If they really just feared him then I could see them simply being held at neutral but . . . ."

The white-haired shinobi leaned back against the window, "So you think that this 'our King is lost' mission is just some ruse set up by the Demon Kingdom to try and get us on their side." The Hokage shrugged.

"I chose Naruto for that very reason. He is very strong-willed and will not back down against anyone, not even the Maou." Her eyes narrowed to whatever was in front of her. "I highly doubt that he is the_real_ Maou, but we'll play along."

Kakashi sighed, reaching into his pouch to pull out his book. "Yes, Hokage-sama." He said, disappearing without a trace.


	3. Chapter 3

**Me: I really shouldn't be taking up new projects when I still have so many others to finish, but I figured I'll leave this one on the side to update when I can. That's the beauty of being the author.**

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The last few days had been a bit busy for Yuri. He was decidedly hired by Ito-san, the owner of the inn, and was put to work washing dishes and cooking meals. The meals part was a bit of a challenge at first but after an hour of experimenting Yuri found that after watching his mother so long he had picked up a few of her recipes.

The owner was especially nice to him. As well as giving him a place to stay with food, Ito-san gave him some pocket money. At first she was really annoyed with him for his ignorance on the currency but she had been a lot more forgiving after he explained that he was a foreigner.

It wasn't much, but it would get him started. In truth, he was saving up to start traveling to the Demon Kingdom. He knew he could probably just go back to Earth, but without his navigator he really didn't want to risk ending up in the middle of the ocean. He spoke with Ito-san about it and she showed him where the Demon Kingdom was on the map.

"It'll be a long trip." She said, trying to hide the worry from her tone. "You'll need at least 6000 Ryo if you're going on foot. Even then you would be pushing it with a lot of camp-outs and possibly the odd job or two." She pointed to the boarder of the elemental countries that was right at the sea. "A boat ride could cost from 3000 to 7000 Ryo depending on who you get it from and what class you're in." The older woman sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Even then you wouldn't end up in the Demon Kingdom, you would be here." She pointed to a neighboring country of the Kingdom.

Yuri looked at the map, confused. It looked like the boat was going out of its way to avoid the Demon Kingdom. "Why don't they just land here?" He asked pointing to a corner of the Kingdom. "There are free ports there and I'm sure the people won't mind another possible rest stop."

Ito-san looked at the young Maou strangely before sighing, "The Demon Kingdom . . .let's just say that the Elemental Countries are very wary of outside forces and the Demon Kingdom is an unknown to most of the world, therefore we are cautious about making contact with them. At least Caloria is an ally of the Demon Kingdom so you shouldn't have any trouble." There was a pause as Ito-san looked up at the Maou with the most serious look Yuri had ever seen her have. "You might want to keep quiet that you are a Demon."

Yuri was a bit startled at her bluntness. He hadn't told Ito-san that he was a demon. It must have been obvious from his hair. "Ah, well . . ." He started, trying to come up with a justification of some sort, mostly for himself, "I'm only half-demon, so I don't think it should be a problem."

The woman grabbed Yuri by the shoulders looking at him with a worryed and somewhat hopeful expression, "Demons can reproduce with humans?"

The surprise in her voice made it evident that this wasn't common knowledge, at least in these parts of the world. "Y-yeah. I thought it was obvious, I mean, the only real differences between humans and demons is the slow aging and forms of magic, so wouldn't it make sense that they can reproduce?"

Ito-san looked Yuri over as if trying to pry out unseen lies from his eyes. When he didn't say anything she let go of him and sat back down on her chair. Her tired eyes wandered from his eyes to his hair. "We should change your hair color." She said decidedly. Getting up to go into the back room. Surprised, Yuri followed her.

The young Maou watched as Ito-san searched through a couple of strange liquids until finally coming up with a weird bottle. "I used to be an artist. I bought some hair-dye due to my . . .experiments. This'll make your hair a light brown if that's ok. That black hair is going to draw too much attention."

A smile found its way to Yuri's lips as he watched Ito-san fill a wooden bucket with some water. "You . . .kinda remind me of my mom." Ito-san froze and looked over at Yuri with wide eyes, "She would always fuss over me when there really wasn't anything to worry about and even now still fusses sometimes." The king's mind wandered to his family back home.

"And your father?" Ito-san asked, mixing some of the dye with the water. It seemed like she was just trying to keep the conversation.

Yuri's expression turned thoughtful when it came to his father, but his smile never faltered. "He's the demon of the family, my mom is human. He's quiet, but I can tell that he cares for Shori and I in his own way."

"Shori?"

"He's my older brother."

"Is he also a demon?"

"Half-demon, yeah."

"Your parents are together?"

"Happily married."

A comfortable silence filled the air as Ito-san started to wet down Yuri's hair, placing a towel on his shoulders so that it wouldn't drip on his kimono. The dye was run through his hair, quickly but efficiently. Ito-san made sure that every bit of hair was covered in dye until it was just them waiting for it to set in. A thought suddenly came to the young king, "What about the customers who already saw me with black hair?"

The older woman shrugged, "We'll just tell them you had an accident with some black ink and we only recently got it out of your hair." Yuri nodded, not really comfortable with lying, but knew that saying he was a demon as an explanation was probably not the best idea. "We'll wait an hour before rinsing out the extra dye, then we'll go shopping for new supplies in Konoha." He nodded, not sure how he would ever thank this woman.


	4. Chapter 4

**Me: OK, I know Sai has black hair and eyes but I'm not going to deal with that whole controversy that he might be a demon. I want the black hair and eyes to be specifically attributed to demons, so I'm going to say that they really are just a deep blue. So, BE WARNED!**

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~One Day Later~

The river that the Maou was supposed to have arrived at was abandoned, but that was to be expected. According to the information given, he would have been there three days ago, giving him more than enough time to wander off somewhere. Kakashi summoned a few hounds to scout out anyone who was in the area recently. They caught on to one scent, but it ended at a nearby bridge. At this point all they needed to do was scout the surrounding area.

"It'll be best to split up at this point. Sakura, you'll take the West. Naruto, you take the South. Sai, you take the North and I'll take the East." Kakashi said hurriedly. He didn't want to admit it but this mission was putting him on edge. Maybe it was because there was a demon involved. "We'll meet up back here in an hour."

Naruto grinned and nodded, being the first to move, heading off in the Southern direction. This mission excited him in a way that he wished it didn't.

Naruto felt a desire to meet this Maou for his own personal reasons. He had heard stories in history class (when he was paying attention) of previous Maou who had terrorized neighboring countries and how they performed unspeakable ninjutsu in order to keep themselves young and powerful. Apparently this had been going on for so long that they could no longer be considered human, hence the reason they were called demons.

Being a Jinchuuriki, Naruto had this curiosity about the Kyuubi that he couldn't explain, nor would he try to. Where did he come from? Why did he hate everything so much? Was there a connection between him and the Demon Tribe?

He hoped that by meeting the Maou, he would be able to get these answers without scrutiny of his teammates.

The blonde finally came up to a roadside inn. Not being able to sense anyone except here he decided to check it out. Now, this inn wouldn't have been strange if it hadn't been for the abnormally large group of girls near the entrance. Most of them were civilians, but Naruto could recognize a few shinobi. They were all laughing and giggling while watching . . .something.

"Yuri-kun~" called one of the girls in a sing-song voice, "Make me some curry, please~" Naruto watched as a young boy with brown hair and eyes came into view for a split second. His face contained a strained smile for the girl who called out to him. The kid couldn't have been older than sixteen as he started serving the customers who were coming in for the restaurant portion of the inn. Two plates of hot curry were on either of his hands as he walked through the crowded area.

Looking through the crowd, Naruto froze when he saw Ino and Tenten both looking at 'Yuri' with love-stricken expressions. Hinata was there as well, but she didn't look nearly as interested as the other two. The Jinchuuriki was a little shocked at this scene, but soon overcame it in favor of going up to his friends for a bit of help.

"Um, Ino-chan? Tenten-chan? Hinata-chan?" He asked tentatively, unsure if he should be interrupting their 'moment'. The three girls looked at him. Hinata immediately went red in the face and started playing with her fingers. Ino glared at Naruto, her hands on her hips. Tenten just glanced at the poor boy before going back to drool over Yuri.

"Do you think you could help me find this person?" The blonde asked, showing Hinata and Ino the drawn version of the picture he had received.

Ino snorted, batting away the picture, causing it to fall and land in Hinata's hands. "What do you think you're doing, Stupid Naruto? We're _busy! _We don't have time to do your errand for you!" Naruto rolled his eyes at her immaturity. He reached for the picture when Hinata looked at him with surprised eyes.

"That's Yuri!" she said with a slightly louder voice then she usually gave.

Ino twisted her head to look at the picture before nodding her head decidedly. "Yeah, that's definitely Yuri. What are _you _doing with a picture of him?"

Naruto grabbed the picture, placing it back into his pouch. "Mission, classified," was all he said. It was what he was told to say if anyone were to ask about the Maou. He turned to start running away from Ino, who was seething mad at this point, and started heading to the meet up point.

* * *

Kakashi watched as all of the team members were rounded up after the hour was over. Sai and Sakura shook their heads in confirmation that they hadn't found him, but Naruto was oddly silent.

"Naruto?" The Jounin asked, a little unnerved at how quiet the Jinchuuriki was.

Blue eyes blinked and looked up at Kakashi, who was waving his hand in front of Naruto's face.

"Y-yeah. I think I found him." The blonde said unsurely. "It's just that . . .the person I found had _brown _hair and eyes. He does look eerily similar to the picture though."

Kakashi frowned at this new piece of information. It had been emphasized in the mission details that the most defining features of the Maou would be his black hair and eyes. But, this was the only lead they had on His Majesty, so they were going to follow it. "Where is he?"

Naruto led them through the Southern edge of the forest, finally coming up to a roadside inn, the group of girls wasn't as large as before, but still pretty decent. "He's working there as some sort of waiter." Kakashi nodded, gesturing for Sakura.

The pink-haired girl came up to her ex-sensei, listening intensely. "Sakura, I need you to go there and wait for a table. You'll be less noticeable due to the . . .abnormally large female population." The girl nodded, eyes narrowing slightly at the group of fangirls. "I want you to observe him for any oddities in his behavior. Anything that would suggest that he is a foreigner. Report back to us when you're finished."

An hour later, Sakura was seated by Yuri himself. The girl admitted to herself that he was indeed handsome, but was still wary. If he _was _the Maou then he probably was in his thirties or something. Ew. "I'll be right with you in a minute, miss. Sorry, it looks like we have a full house tonight." He smiled at her apologetically before turning to another girl to get her seated as well. Sakura looked down at the menu in front of her, eyeing the 'New Curry!' that seemed to be made by Yuri.

Looking at the brown-haired boy Sakura could tell that he was overly-polite, but it seemed like he was entirely too comfortable with serving people. Almost like he had done it before. The only thing about him that screamed 'foreigner' was his accent. It was heavy, obviously not from the Elemental Countries but she was unsure if it was specifically from the Demon Kingdom.

The boy looked over at Sakura, smiled and walked her way. "Have you decided yet?" He asked, placing a glass of water in front of her, gently.

She hadn't even seen him grab the water.

Shaking herself out of her daze, Sakura spoke up, "Yeah, I'll try the new curry please . . . ." The boy beamed and nodded, jotting down the order on a slip of paper before walking away. Sakura barely got a glimpse of it before nearly falling over in shock.

It was not the Common Language. Hell, It was probably not even the Demon Language. Whatever it was, Yuri seemed to understand it as he took many orders that way, smiling at each costumer as they swooned in his presence. Sakura couldn't understand what was so charming about him. Sure, he was handsome, but this amount of attention was unnatural.

Deciding to ask about it, Sakura turned to someone on a neighboring table. "Hey, what's the fuss about that the new guy?"

The girl turned around with this offended look on her face before she spotted the pink-haired girl's headband, "Oh, um. You must have not been here when it happened. You see, yesterday, Yuri went to the Konoha to help Ito-san with shopping. There was an . . .incident that ended up with Yuri saving a girl from drowning. Also, have to _talked _with him? He's like no other guy. When you're talking it's like his attention is focused on you entirely! And he _listens. _My sister was complaining to him about how her boyfriend never takes her on a date and he said, 'Maybe he just doesn't want to share you with everyone else. I know I wouldn't.'" The girl squealed then went back to chatter with her friend about how 'dreamy' the new guy was. To Sakura, his description seemed extremely exaggerated and it probably was to an extent, but there had to be a source for all these rumors.

The pink-haired girl waited until a plate of steaming hot curry appeared in front of her. She looked up to see Yuri, who was smiling apologetically, "Sorry it took so long," He looked around at the now near empty room, it had been around and hour before he was able to get to Sakura's table, "I'll give this to you on the house, for the wait. Hope you enjoy your food."

Sakura nodded, picking up her spoon. After taking a bite, Sakura could probably deem this one of the best plates of curry she ever had. She grabbed Yuri's sleeve as he was walking away, making him stop in place and look at her curiously. Embarrassed, Sakura let go of his sleeve and looked down at her plate, "D-did you make this yourself?" She asked, trying to forget about that awkward moment.

Yuri scratched his nose, looking a little guilty, "Yeah, I made the batch you're eating, but my mom made the recipe." He laughed, "She always says that one day curry will bring about world peace and eating it makes me believe her." His face turned somber for a minute before reverting back to his cheerful smile, "Hope you like it, I gotta get back to work." With that he turned around and started collecting the leftover dirty plates and cups.

Sakura ate her meal in silence and left a generous tip before leaving. It was time for her report.

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**Me: Hoards of fangirls for poor Yuri. I slipped in this because of how everyone seemed to think Yuri was so handsome in the Demon Kingdom and the human ship they were on. I figured that the same would apply here and everyone would see Yuri as unexplainably charming, hence the need for fangirls. Not to mention, who _doesn't _love a man who can cook?**


	5. Chapter 5

**Me: Maaaaah I was up late last night writing this, hope you enjoy!**

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Yuri stretched out his arms over his head, letting his bones pop back into place. A full day of working took a lot out of you. Surprisingly though, he was enjoying it. It reminded him of the job Murata and him took every Summer. Though, there wasn't nearly as many customers then as there was now.

The Maou looked over at Ito-san, who was washing the last dish. Her face was scrunched up in frustration at the last of the dried pieces of sauce that wouldn't come off. "Ito-san, is there anything else you need me to do?" Yuri asked, wondering if she would break the plate with how roughly she was scrubbing it.

The older woman shook her head, not even turning to look at him, "Nah, head to bed Yuri. You deserve the rest." Yuri nodded, not sure if she saw him but headed upstairs to his room anyway. Yawning, the young King took out the futon from the closet and laid it out. Next, he took out his contacts. Placing them gently into their container and snapping the lid shut.

There was a shuffling sound by the window, causing Yuri to turn around at the sudden sound, seeing nothing, "Wha-?" He started asking himself before he felt a gloved hand on his mouth. Looking up he saw a man with silver hair and a mask covering half his face. The headband on his forehead was covering his left eye. Startled, Yuri fell back onto the futon. The hand was still placed over his mouth, making it impossible to make a sound.

The one eye that was visible was looking at him as if it was looking at his very soul. This caused Yuri to shutter at the thought, hoping he really couldn't do that.

"Naruto." The man said, turning to a blonde boy who was just by the window, "I thought you said his eyes were brown."

The blonde boy, now dubbed 'Naruto', looked at the young Maou with a puzzled expression, "He _did, _even Sakura said so."

The silver-haired man looked back down at Yuri, spotting something in his hand before reaching to take it. "Contacts?" with a flick of his thumb he opened the container to have a closer look at them, "Colored contacts. These are expensive. Something only _royalty _could afford." Yuri shivered at his tone. He _knew. _Sure, colored contacts were not that uncommon in _his _world, but they were rarely seen in _this _world so it was only natural that he would assume only the rich could afford them. It was this fact that led Yuri to believe that his cover was blown.

Was he going to be killed now? It was a possibility. Considering how many enemies the Demon Kingdom had it was more than likely. If only he could find some water, or scream for help, but he really didn't want to put Ito-san in danger by doing that. Unsure of what else to do he closed his eyes and waited for death.

The gloved hand was gently removed from his face, allowing him to take a breath that he sorely needed. The silver-haired man, Naruto, a dark-brown haired boy and a pink-haired girl that was in the shop earlier today all looked at him expectantly as he raised himself off of the futon. "Your Majesty, we are shinobi employed by your retainers to escort you back to your Kingdom."

Scratching the back of his head, Yuri tried to find a word for this situation. It was . . .weird being in front of _Shinobi_ of all things. He had assumed that Shinobi were only native to Japan, making this situation _very _bizarre. Especially since he originally thought they were going to kill him, he really didn't know how to act. "Um, nice to meet you?" He asked, really unsure with how they did greetings here, "But um, if you _are_ gonna be escorting me back to my Kingdom, I think it's best if we drop the formalities. Besides you guys can't be much older then I am." He smiled, really hoping they wouldn't continue calling him 'Your Majesty'. It was bad enough back home. "My name is Yuri Shibuya. You are?"

There was an awkward silence as the three younger ones looked at each other, unsure of what to make of the young King. Naruto was the one who decided to step in. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I love ramen, hate the three minutes it takes for ramen to cook and I'm gonna be the next Hokage!" Yuri blinked, not sure what a 'Hokage' was but nodded at him with a smile all the same.

The pink-haired girl looked annoyed at her partner but didn't do anything as she just said, "Sakura Haruno."

There was a boy with what looked like black hair, but the closer Yuri inspected it, the more he was convinced it was really just a dark blue. His eyes matched his hair as they stared at him with cold indifference. He gave a painfully fake smile that made Yuri twitch inside. "Sai."

The silver-haired man looked over to his teammates before answering, "Kakashi Hatake."

Yuri nodded, satisfied, before stating, "Not to be rude but, I had a long day. Do you think we can talk about this tomorrow? I want to get some rest before we head out, if you don't mind." The four shinobi were a little surprised (and pleased) at the Maou's manners. All four of them nodded, a little perplexed at the strangeness of the so-called 'king'. A thoughtful expression reached Yuri's face as he watched the four of them, "Now that I think about it, it is getting pretty late. Maybe I could asked Ito-san to give me a few more futons? You all must be tired as well, though I'm not sure if you want to share this room with me. It's not very spacious."

Kakashi smiled at the young King's naivety, "Don't worry, Your Highness, we will accommodate ourselves. Just worry about getting some rest."

Yuri nodded, scrambling under the futon just as the three younger shinobi disappeared out the window, "It's _Yuri, _by the way. Honestly, I get enough of the 'Your Majesty' and 'Your Highness' stuff back home. I don't need it here." Kakashi nodded, chuckling to himself as he too disappeared out the window.


	6. Chapter 6

**Me: Weeell here it is. I actually finished this awhile ago, but due to the fact that I am on a road trip I was unable to post it. (Seriously there was no internet connection for the longest time) I hope you enjoy my minions!**

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A stream of light flickered through the window, as the sound of a chime was heard in the distance. The light hit the young King's eyes, waking him up to a new day at the inn. Looking around, Yuri assessed that the shinobi were either a dream or they just didn't want to be seen.

_My contacts! _He thought, scrambling around trying to find his lost container. He eventually found them on the side of his bed with a note in the Common Language.

_Your Highness,_

_We will be near._

The words were simple enough to understand, which was lucky since Yuri was not very good with human languages. He scanned the sheet of paper itself, noticing how thin it was compared to the parchments that he signed everyday. That was odd in itself. He hummed and stuffed the sheet of paper in his kimono. Maybe he could get Gunter to make thinner paper for him to sign.

Popping in his contacts and making sure he was comfortable with them, Yuri stretched out the sore muscles in his back. It looked like he had an escort to the Demon Kingdom (Which was a relief in more ways then one) but he wasn't exactly sure if he should be happy or scared of the shinobi being around him. On one hand they were a great asset and was probably the only way he would get home without getting into much trouble. On the other, they had snuck into his room without him noticing and held him down on his futon.

That ordeal had been a bit unnerving to say the least.

After putting away the futon, Yuri trudged downstairs to find Ito-san asleep at a table. Her head was resting on the tabletop as her breath let out a light snoring sound. An empty sake bottle was in front of her, as well as a half-empty cup. Yuri smiled at the older woman as her brown hair was sprawled everywhere.

Gently, the Demon King shook Ito-san's shoulder. The woman rubbed her eyes and groggily looked around her, as if unsure of where she was. Her brown eyes met his before giving him a grin.

"Yuri! Because of you our sales went through the roof!" She chuckled, picking up the sake bottle and shaking it. "It's a shame you gotta head back home." Disappointed at the empty contents, Ito-san set the bottle back down. Yuri had a sinking suspicion that she was still drunk, but you could never tell with Ito-san. "You know, I'll miss ya kid." Yuri chuckled to himself as he sat down next to her. It wasn't long until her voice turned somber as she continued, "You know I always wanted to go to the Demon Kingdom. I even taught myself how to read and write in the Demon Language, can you believe that?"

She laughed bitterly and Yuri was left to wonder what made her want to go so badly. He sighed, deciding not to pry and instead picked up the empty bottle, leaving the cup, and was about to head into the kitchen when Ito-san grabbed the sleeve of his kimono. "I got some traveling clothes for you, I'll put them in your room." Ito-san drank the rest of the sake in her cup and got up from the table. Yuri watched with worried eyes as the older woman forced herself up the stairs. He wanted to help, but he also knew that she wouldn't want to accept it, due to her pride.

Sighing, the Maou went into the kitchen, now with the cup, and washed the rest of the dishes that Ito-san had given up on last night. As he scrubbed out the sake cup, Yuri began going over his thoughts. He _really _wanted to return home to the Demon Kingdom. But the thought of leaving Ito-san here alone . . . . He shook himself out of his thoughts and quickly finished up the task in front of him. He had duties to attend to back home.

But he also had a duty to his friends. Sighing once again, Yuri decided that it would be best if he just left before causing more damage. Then again, maybe he could talk with the leaders of the Fire Country . . .set up an allegiance of sorts. That way he would be able to visit whenever he wished and anyone from the Fire Country would be able to visit the Demon Kingdom without much of a hassle.

He could always just take Ito-san with him, but that would mean putting her in danger for associating with the Demon King. And that wasn't something he was willing to do.

Finishing up the dishes, Yuri decided to go upstairs to check on Ito-san. He hadn't heard her come back downstairs.

As he came up to the upstairs hallway, the Maou noticed his bedroom door was open. Looking in, Yuri was surprised to see Ito-san looking down at some clothes in her hands as she set them on the floor. She didn't move but continued staring at seemingly nothing.

"Ito-san?" He asked, unsure if he was interrupting anything.

Tired brown eyes looked up at him, unsure of what to make of him until she finally sighed. "About seventeen or eighteen years ago, I met a man, a traveller and fell in love with him." She smoothed out the pile of cloths as if her hands were looking for something to do. Yuri walked forward and sat down in front of her, listening intently.

She let out a shaky breath before continuing. "He stayed here for a year, making up one excuse or another to stay. At the end of the year, he said he was in love with me and I admitted that I had strong feelings for him as well." She let a hand travel over the pieces of cloth on her kimono. Her voice was distance, almost as if she was watching a movie in front of her. "In a few months of being together we decided to get married . . .after finding out I was pregnant." Her hands shook. Yuri reached out and grasped one of them, hoping to calm her down. "He was a demon tribesman. I-I loved him, b-but he d-died before I was even six months p-pregnant." Tears were welling up in her eyes as she gripped the young Demon King's hand tighter. "He was k-killed after people found out he was a d-demon. I-I had a m-miscarriage a f-few weeks l-later." Yuri pulled Ito-san into a hug, tears threatening to spill over from his own eyes.

Five minutes passes, then ten, then a half hour until the older woman was finally able to calm down. Yuri rubbed her back in soothing circles, silently crying himself for his friend's lost family. Ito-san took a few deep breaths before speaking again."If . . .if my baby survived, he would have been about your age. I imagine he would be like you as well."

Yuri chuckled, wiping away his own tears with the sleeve of his kimono. "What if the baby had been a girl?"

He could feel Ito-san smile into his shoulder as she finally released him and pulled back. "She would still be like you. Just with breasts." Yuri couldn't help it, he burst out laughing.

He stopped, however, when Ito-san's face turned dark. "I had assumed . . .that because he was of the demon tribe that, that was the reason I had a miscarriage." Rubbing her tear-stained cheeks, she sighed, "I guess I was wrong. Maybe God is simply punishing me because I love a demon."

Yuri closed his eyes. His heart throbbed at her use of 'love' instead of 'loved' as he tried to come up with something, anything that would ease the older woman's worries. In the end he just began rambling, "I'm sure . . .that your baby would have been beautiful. So beautiful that God wanted the baby for himself, so he took your baby away." He opened his eyes to see Ito-san looking at him with a shocked expression, "But don't worry. That baby is loved, I'm sure of it. By it's father and by God himself." He grinned, "And I _know _that baby is love by it's mother."

Fresh tears made their way down Ito-san's face. Yuri felt a little panicked at what he was seeing, and slightly guilty. "I-Ito-san are you alright? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry again."

To his utter surprise, Ito-san started laughing. "Don't worry about it Yuri." She shook her head. "Now, get dressed in those clothes. I'm gonna collect your payment for today and explain to you what's going to happen, ne?" With that, she got up, leaving a stunned Yuri on the ground.

"Ito-san?" He asked, with a worried tone lacing his voice.

The brown-haired woman shook her head. Letting the loose hair fly side to side before letting it settle on her shoulders, "Call me Akiko. My full name is Akiko Ito." A smile graced the young king's lips as she left the room with a slight spring in her step.


	7. Chapter 7

**Me: What's this? Two chapter's in one day? Le Gasp! Does this mean I'm going to start updating more often? **

**. . . .probably not . . . .**

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Kakashi sat on the ledge of the balcony outside of Yuri's window, reading his Ichi-Ichi Paradise novel with Naruto was sitting next to him, enjoying a cup of ramen. Or at least, they were. After listening to the conversation inside, they had each paused in their favorite activity. Kakashi had his book held between his fingers, letting it rest on his knee while Naruto had placed his half-eaten cup of ramen on the ledge next to him.

They both were deep in thought about the boy (or man, they couldn't decide which) who was left sitting in the room behind them. Finally, they listened as Yuri left his temporary room to go occupy his time with something downstairs. It was unfathomable and a little unsettling how compassionate the King was acting. One would've expected a Demon to scoff off the woman's past. A normal person would've been sympathetic, possibly even disgusted with the fact that Ito-san had fallen in love with a Demon, though they wouldn't have shown it.

Yet the Demon King hadn't reacted annoyed, sympathetic nor disgusted. He had _cried _for a woman he barely knew. He had practically _encouraged _her continuing love for her Demon lover and half-demon child. This wasn't sympathy he showed, it was compassion. It was almost as if he had acted the role of a messenger to let a grieving woman know how her family was doing.

Granted, what he said could have been a simple lie. Yet, the way he spoke it. The way he told her about her family was as if he _knew. _His tone had held absolute certainty toward the happiness of the dead demon and child. It was these words that led Kakashi to the conclusion that this . . .boy wasn't really the Demon King.

It wasn't only his words, either. It was his mannerisms. It was his comfortable attitude toward this entire situation and even how he served the customers. He held no presence of royalty. He seemed to show no superiority toward anyone, not even the shinobi who were being payed to escort him. But more then that, it was the revelation that Yuri was simply a half-demon. If there was one thing that was well-known about the Demon Kingdom, it was the prejudice they held against humans. It was incomprehensible that such a Kingdom would let a half-breed take a seat of power, much less a throne.

It was all these things that led the white-haired shinobi to the belief that Yuri was a decoy. Thinking about it even further, because of his status as a half-breed, he was probably being forced into this. The Maou probably used Yuri as a way to gain trust with other countries. Yuri was a young boy with a lot of compassion, which is probably what led to the Maou to sending him to the Fire Country. Under this logic, it was not a stretch to assume that Yuri had not done this before. It was probably this specific political move that led to other countries to trusting the Demon Kingdom as they had 'trusted' them with their 'King'.

Of course, Kakashi was not stupid. This was all speculation on his part and he knew that. In the end, he opted to keep an eye on Yuri and any evidence he could gather to help prove his theory.

There was the sound of a door opening below them, causing both shinobi to look down from the balcony. Yuri shuffled out from below them, oblivious to their presence, carrying a load of wet laundry. A song was being hummed from the Maou's lips as he placed a wet yukata on the clothesline. Naurto watched the boy that looked his age with interest before jumping down to join him.

Kakashi sighed before picking up his book once again.

"What're you doing?" The blonde shinobi asked with interest. Yuri jumped at the sudden noise, almost dropping the piece of cloth in his hand.

The now brown eyed king turned to look at Naruto with a startled expression. "Oh man, you scared me!" Yuri took a deep breath to calm himself before he continued talking, "I'm doing the laundry that It- I mean - Akiko-san asked me to do." The japanese boy gestured to the three articles hanging behind him.

Confused blue eyes watched as the king turned back around to hand up the dripping piece of cloth onto the line. "Aren't you _royalty?" _Yuri turned to stare at Naruto with confusion of his own. "I mean, you look way too used to this to be a king."

Laughter spilled from Yuri's lips. The boy clutched his stomach as Naruto only stared at him as if he had gone crazy. "So _that's _what this is about. I wasn't always a King you know." The darker-haired boy went back to his laundry duty while continuing to speak. "I wasn't even a noble before I became king. Ironically that was why they chose me to be king." He paused as he held a wet kimono to the clothes line.

Looking behind him Yuri saw Naruto looking at him with a look of fascination. "I thought that you were born into royalty."

Yuri shrugged. Generally you were, in human countries. Recounting all of this in his head, Yuri soon realized just how odd the Demon Kingdom really was politically. "In the Demon Kingdom, the King is usually chosen by the ten noble houses, by mutual agreement. But that's only if Shinou doesn't meddle." Yuri was about to turn to his basket when he found a wet kendo-gi being held in front of him. "Thanks." He said as Naruto waited for him to clip it up.

"Who's Shinou?" Yuri paused at that. He wondered if it was ok to tell Naruto about the whole concept of souls. It wasn't like it was a deeply guarded secret and well . . .he was the Demon King.

Making up his mind, Yuri decided to just go with it. He was a terrible liar anyway. "Shinou was our first Demon King."

Naurto's eyes almost popped out of his head, "No way! He should be dead by now, unless your kingdom his relatively new . . .but aren't you the 27th Demon King or something?"

Yuri nodded, taking the hakama that blonde shinobi handed him and clipping it up. "Well . . .he's not alive. His soul is . . .trapped? I think it's either trapped or he likes it there. Anyway, he's in a temple worshipped by the priestess that live there. His word is second only to the King in charge and even then if he has the Great Sage on his side then no one can oppose him." Naruto then handed Yuri a pair of . . .stretchy pants? The young king vaguely wondered what century this country was in.

"So who's this 'Great Sage'?" Naruto asked, his eyes shining. Yuri was now really curious as to why Naruto was curious. It wasn't often that a human wanted to know a lot about the Demon Kingdom. Such curiosity was usually stifled by fear or resentment.

The Maou shrugged, "He was the half brother and tactician to Shinou four thousand years ago. He's been reborn with his memories ever since he died and has a lot of political power." Yuri shook out a t-shirt, a bit puzzled as to where the more modern clothes were coming from. "So tell me, why are you so interested?" The young King eyed the blonde shinobi, "Not that I mind, but usually humans just disregard Demon culture and politics."

Naruto stiffened at the question. His blue eyes lowered at the question as he shuffled his feet in the dirt a bit. He looked like a child who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "I, uh, was just wondering."

Yuri raised an eyebrow but shrugged as he could tell that Naruto didn't want to talk about the real reason he was asking. "I don't mind the questions Naruto, honest. In fact, I was kinda enjoying them. It's not often that people ask me these kinds of things and I'm surprised that I even remember anything."

Naruto gave the Maou a puzzled look, "How would you not remember? You're talking about it like everyone in your country should already know."

Yuri picked up the now empty basket. "Well, I wasn't born in the Demon Kingdom, so I had to learn all of this in the last two years."

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Me: Sooo some people asked when this was taking place within Naruto Shippuden and to be honest I never really gave it much thought. Everyone is aware that Naruto is a Jinchurikki and Sai is still pretty emotionless at this point, so you can kinda guess when this takes place. I need those two points in the plot to exist for the fanfic to work with moral and everything so I'm not going to pinpoint a time frame. Think of this as a filler . . .a really long filler . . .so a Bleach length filler!


	8. Chapter 8

**Me: This chapter was really difficult to write. Although, it is a bit longer then usual so please enjoy.**

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Akiko Ito sat staring a the profits laid out in front of her. One pile was the funds set aside for future use. It was 'just in case' money. So if there was an accident or something the inn would be covered. Another pile was her living expenses. There wasn't much, but then again, there wasn't much she needed. She mostly grew her own food in the back and any cloths she bought for herself were always kept in prime condition. That money usually went toward extra bottles of sake.

There was a third pile that was for inn expenses. It was the largest due to the inn's need to be constantly stocked with food. But even with it being the most expensive of her problems, it wasn't the biggest.

No, the biggest problem she had was with the fourth pile.

It was Yuri's salary. It was a pile of money that she felt reluctant to fill with money. Oh, she had enough to give him what he needed for travel expenses and more. And even if she did give him the money she would still have enough extra to last her another week without having to work.

The reason she was reluctant to fill that particular pile with money was the fact that the more she put into the pile the more likely Yuri would leave. It had been years since she'd found someone to confide in. Especially when it came to her Demon lover and child. Yuri had been there and had understood better then anyone else she knew could. He was a half-demon so it was inevitable that he would get it.

Yet, despite her reluctance, she filled it. Eight thousand ryo was promptly placed into the pile. It would be enough for food and inn expenses. Pausing, she added in another five hundred so he could buy something for himself. Smiling bitterly at the pile, Akiko took the pouch she had placed next to it and filled it with the ryo she knew Yuri needed.

"Akiko-san?" A timid voice asked her. She turned around to come face to face with the object of her thoughts. Yuri smiled at her, "I put up the laundry, is there anything else you need me to do?"

The older woman smiled at the young boy before her. He was such a hard-worker. "Yes, actually. Could you start on your curry and the rice? I think that we're probably going to have a lot of customers asking for that after what happened last night." Yuri grinned and nodded, turning around to head toward the kitchen. "Oh, and Yuri?" Turning his head, he gave Akiko a confused look, "I have your salary here. We'll talk about it when you're done in the kitchen alright?" He nodded slowly, no longer wearing his usual grin, as he scurried into the kitchen.

The older woman sighed before putting all the money away. She was getting attached. She knew it and knew it was probably a bad idea, but she couldn't find it in her to care. So what if she was starting to see Yuri as a son to her? She deserved it didn't she? After all, God had selfishly taken away her happiness, so why didn't she grab a little of it back?

Deep down though, she knew that he didn't belong here. She would never _force _him to stay here. That would and forever be his choice. But it would be nice if he did choose to stay. She could use the extra help and company. Yet, she knew that was never going to happen. So the only thing she could do for her new friend was to help him got to wherever he needed to be. And if that meant giving him a little extra money, then so be it.

There was a ring from the restaurant door opening, signaling Akiko that customers were starting to come in for their lunch. She ran over to the kitchen and knocked on the door. Signaling Yuri to get a move on.

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Yuri looked up at the knocking on the kitchen door. Having learned early on that that meant customers were starting to show, he quickly finished peeling the potatoes. Moving on from that, he stuffed a log into the fire below the oven and stove before moving on to the carrots.

They had already been peeled and washed that morning, to which Yuri had been grateful for. Taking a knife, the Maou started chopping the carrots before placing them into the pot. Carrots always took the longest to cook. Next he went to chop up the potatoes. He finished that quickly before placing them into the pot as well. It was a good thing that He had prepared the broth before hand, or else he might have been scrambling with that as well. Dancing around the kitchen, he put in a multitude of spices that were fresh picked from Akiko-san's garden that morning.

Finally, when everything was put together, all that was left was for it to simmer. The pot was extremely large, so it should last them at least half the night. Satisfied with his work, Yuri put on an apron and a notepad before heading out into the busy restaurant.

By this time, Akiko-san had already entered the kitchen and started on her own cooking, leaving Yuri to take orders.

Halfway through the day, at a point when the customers had thinned out, Yuri heard the door open. Turning around to greet the customers, he hesitated for a second to realize who had just walked in. "Table for two?" He asked, glancing at the two girls headbands. The blonde girl nodded, her eyes shining with an emotion that Yuri couldn't identify. The other girl looked really shy and timid. Definitely not someone you would expect to be a shinobi, but Yuri only smiled at both girls and led them to a small table. He set down menus and chopsticks that were wrapped in a napkin.

Turning around, he went to the back and filled a couple of glasses with water and ice. Coming back, the young king gently placed the glasses of water in front of them. Taking out his notepad, he glanced at the two girls in front of him. Vaguely he wondered if these girls were from the same place as the Shinobi that were hired to protect him. "Have you decided what you wanted?"

The brown haired girl glanced up before answering, "U-um h-how is the c-curry?"

Yuri took a second before answering, "Well, I think it's pretty good. I made it myself, but it's probably not as good as my moms." A nostalgic smile spread across his face as he remembered his mother, "She always believed that world peace was attainable with good food and a positive attitude. Something that's usually reflected in her cooking." Blinking, the Maou seemed to realize that he was rambling, "Oh, I-I'm sorry. Um, the curry is fresh and was made just today. Would you like that?" Both of the girls were staring at him openly now, both nodding their heads. Beaming, Yuri scribbled down the order and headed back into the kitchen.

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"Thank you, come again!" Yuri yelled out to the last of the customers, shutting the door behind them and switching the sign from 'open' to 'close'. Stretching, the young king turned around to find Akiko sitting at a back table, nursing a cup of sake.

Shaking his head, Yuri went to her and gently took the cup from her hands. "C'mon, Akiko-san. You need your sleep and I need mine. Maybe we should both head to bed, okay?" Glaring at the cup in Yuri's hand, Akiko grabbed the bottle in front of her and chugged it down. Yuri's eyes widened at her sudden attitude, leaping him into action and trying to take the bottle away from her. "A-Akiko-san! What are you doing?"

She only avoided his hand, letting the rest of the sake slip down her throat with ease. Slamming the bottle back down on the table, Akiko gave Yuri a satisfied smirk, "You're ten years too early to tell me to stop drinking, kid." The Maou rolled his eyes at her antics and started to pick up the bottle, only to have the older woman grab his wrist. "Hey . . .I got your money." She let go and reached down, pulling out a pouch. "I added some from today's profits as well, you really bring in the customers." She threw the pouch on the table. "16,000 Ryo. Now you have more then enough to head toward the Demon Kingdom."

Yuri frowned at the pouch before setting himself down on the chair opposite of Akiko. "There's no way I made that much money for you in five days time."

She shrugged, leaning heavily on the table in front of her. "It's that and payment for the recipe of curry you left me. That stuff has been selling like crazy and probably will for a long time." She waved her hand as if swatting away an invisible fly. "I also added in some extra as just in case money, but it's not gonna be free." Leaning in, she got within three inches of his face. Yuri pulled back a little, but tried not to be rude at the same time. "You have to promise to come back and visit me, alright?" Her face was flushed and her breath smelled like booze, making Yuri nod in agreement, if only to have her back away from his face.

Satisfied, she pulled back and rested her head on the table. Yuri sighed and got up. Moving around the table, he went to her and started shaking her shoulder. "Akiko-san? I think it's time for you to head to bed." She mumbled something incoherently, causing him to sigh once again. Turning her around so that she was sitting up, Yuri balanced her in place before swiftly turning around and crouching so that she was resting on his back. Breathing out in relief that he got her on his back, he shifted her weight and lifted her up.

With the brown-haired woman on his back, Yuri walked to the back of the inn where he knew her bedroom was. After tucking her in and closing the door, he came back to the common room to be face to face with the shinobi.

"Are you ready to leave?" asked Kakashi, gesturing toward the sleeping woman in the bedroom. Yuri gave one last lingering glance before nodding. Grabbing the pack beside him, Yuri went over to the table with the empty sake bottle and left his note. He really didn't want to leave without saying a proper goodbye, but he had duties back in the Demon Kingdom. He would apologize later, he vowed. As he grabbed the money-filled pouch on the table he also vowed to pay her back ten times the amount.

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**Me: As I mentioned earlier, this chapter was REALLY difficult to write. I knew that the goodbye between Akiko and Yuri was almost nonexistent, but I knew that Yuri couldn't stay there for an extended period because he actually has work to do as the King back home. I also knew that Akiko, when it came down to it, wouldn't want to say goodbye. Yuri was actually torn between talking to her, which was why he tried to talk to her and stop her from getting drunk in the first place. Yet, I felt like it shouldn't be like that. Like that wasn't their relationship, or at least how it should be portrayed. So, she got drunk anyway. And Yuri was left to leave a note as a goodbye. It's really hard to explain it, but I'm happy with it.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Me: It took a while, but at least the chapter is longer then usual.**

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Maybe it was the quiet that made him nervous. Or maybe it was the shinobi themselves. It was evident that they were strong, possibly stronger then any of his retainers yet somehow he figured that it wasn't that. Yuri glanced at his escorts once more time, deciding that the reason he felt so on edge was because they were keeping their distance.

Sakura was in front and whenever the young king took an extra quick step, she would always match it, successfully keeping the distance between them. Sai was on his right, and he would copy Sakura's movements and move away whenever he moved closer. Kakashi did the same on the left.

Sighing, the Maou finally settled with just stopping dead. He took that moment to stretch out his shoulders and sore legs. They had been walking for quite a while. "You ok, Yuri?" The young King looked up at the voice to see Naruto now next to him, looking at him curiously.

Yuri smiled, happy that at least someone wasn't keeping their distance and nodded, "I'm not not used to walking in these sandals." He pointed to his feet. "My sneakers are in my bag, do you mind if I change into them? It'll only be a moment." The blonde raised an eyebrow. Blue eyes met with the ones of his comrades one by one before he nodded in response. Yuri breathed a sigh of relief, reaching into his bag to pull out his sneakers. As he put on the shoes, he was unaware of the four shinobi staring at him in puzzlement. The shoes were like nothing they had every seen before. The oddness of it caused the shinobi to look away and pretend they weren't just staring.

Naruto, although noticed the oddness of Yuri's shoes, had more pressing questions in his head. Not wanting to seem like an idiot, he decided to ask Kakashi a question without Yuri listening in. "Hey . . .Kakashi-sensei?" He asked, keeping his voice down so that Yuri couldn't hear. The white-haired shinobi looked at his former student, waiting for him to speak up. "Is it possible to become the King of a country if you weren't born there?"

Whatever Kakashi had been expecting Naruto to ask, it wasn't that. Naruto was known to be completely uninterested in politics or any academic field for that matter. Hiding his surprise by pretending to think about the question, the white-haired shinobi finally answered, "It depends on the country but marrying the first princess of a country or a queen can ensure that person's right to the throne, regardless of where they were born. Sometimes a country runs out of future heirs and so they look for a family that had blood ties to their royal family. Usually they find that family in another country. So yes, it is possible."

Naruto was quiet after what he just heard. It still didn't make sense to him. "What if . . . .the country didn't choose their King based on blood?"

Sighing, Kakashi delved into his knowledge. "I guess it's possible. But usually the King would rise from either being the smartest or the strongest in that situation. Much like how we choose our Hokage. Other then that then . . .the King was probably the leader of a recent uprising that took over the government. I can't see else how they would choose a King."

Naruto's eyes scanned back to Yuri in wonderment. From what he'd been told, Yuri had been chosen to be King by order of ten nobles. Yet, he had not even been born into the country. It gave Naruto a headache just thinking about it.

Sakura, on the other hand, was worried over Naruto's questions and silence. It wasn't . . .well . . ._normal _for Naruto to act like this. Brash, unthinking and ignorant were all words she would use to describe him, but at this moment she couldn't. He was _thoughtful _of all things and he seemed to be soaking up the information Kakashi gave him like a sponge. This definitely caused some concern for her.

Sai more observed the Demon King himself. Never had he ever seen a person with such black eyes and hair. Sure, you'd get the occasional family with inky hair or maybe with a set of darker eyes then most, but never did you see them on the same person. Sai's own hair and eyes weren't even that dark and contained a bluish hint to them and even then he was a rarity.

Yuri, however, only had black eyes and they were currently covered by his contacts, turning them a chocolate brown.

In Sai's head, the Maou and Yuri were two separate entities. Everything about the boy screamed 'commoner'. Although he did have confidence in his stride, he wasn't walking around like he owned the place. He also looked uncomfortable with his new bodyguards and was excessively polite to all of them. He didn't command, he asked. He didn't complain about walking a long ways. He had enough patience to deal with _Naruto._

Yuri finished putting on his sneakers, double tying them so that they would not unlace. Satisfied, he looked over to the alert group of shinobi. "Sorry about the wait." He said sincerely, looking over to Naruto. He kid looked _bored, _not that Yuri could blame him. Yet at the same time, he looked alert to his surroundings, which amused Yuri in the strangest of ways.

They picked up their pace again, not going too fast for any suspicion, but not going too slow so they were behind on schedule. During the time Yuri had to put on his sneakers, he was able to come up with his own opinions of the four guiding him. Kakashi was obviously the leader. He was soft-spoken and only had one eye peaking out from the entirety of his face. The one eye revealed more to Yuri then was expected. It held a certain look . . .a look that he had seen in the eyes of many of the Demons back home.

At first, Yuri thought that was just a Demon thing. But later, as he met other Demons and humans, he realized what that look was. It was the look of a tired soldier. One who had seen too much war for his time. Kakashi himself looked very young, which didn't usually say much for a demon, but seeing as how the white-haired shinobi was human it said a lot.

Then there was Sakura, the only female in the group. She looked tough, yet gentle at the same time. She reminded him of Gisela. The healer back home held the same kind of demeanor. Yuri would've sworn that they knew each other, if he hadn't caught the bit of immaturity in Sakura that Gisela ultimately was missing. It was a human thing, he had noticed. The immaturity that came with being so young and impulsive.

Yuri, being half-human, was considered reckless in the eyes of his demon friends. But comparing himself to Sakura and Naruto, he had to admit that they would probably fit more into the category of 'reckless' then he did. He looked over at the other two occupants. Sai and Kakashi on the other hand . . . . He shook his head as his thoughts started drifting.

Looking over at Sai this time, the young Maou frowned. He was wearing a fake smile, as usual. He seemed to always have it on his face. Grimacing, Yuri sighed. He could only imagine what Sai had been through to have to put on that kind of smile. It reminded him of Saralegui. The fake smile that Yuri hadn't been able to pinpoint before on Sara now looked painfully obvious on Sai. Oh, how he hated being more perceptive then he was six months ago.

Noticing things that were hidden was a skill that Yuri regretted ever getting. It all started when Conrad had 'betrayed' them. The young Maou started looking at things more deeply and it shook him. He started to be able to tell when he was being lied to and it hurt. It hurt to see someone he trusted completely be so obviously lying to him. It hurt even more that despite the lies he knew he would still trust them until he died. His perception only grew after the 'incident' with King Saralegui.

It was through this perception that he was able to see past Sai's fake smile . . .as well as Naruto's.

The orange-clad shinobi's smile was more genuine. But that wasn't what Yuri saw past. It was his continuous happy-go-lucky attitude. '_It's an act.' _Yuri realized, watching Naruto chatter away about his village and his love for ramen. It was a good one too. His eyes held something deeper, an emotion that the Maou couldn't decipher. If he had to guess, however, it would probably be sadness.

Yuri blinked when he realized that the subject of his thoughts actually asked him a question, "I'm sorry. I was spacing out. What was your question?"

Naruto rolled his eyes dramatically and sighed, "I asked if that was your real hair-color." He looked pointedly at Yuri's brown hair.

A little confused by the question, Yuri replied, "Hm? No, it's not. Akiko-san thought that black would look too . . .demonish. So she dyed it brown." Yuri lifted his arms and stretched them out above him. It was an innocent gesture but it caused everyone around him to tense slightly. He dropped his hands and crossed his arms in thought, "Good thinking on her part. God(?), I remember a few years when double-blacks still had a bounty. I got in so much trouble just for showing my face around."

Naruto blinked his big blue eyes in confusion, "What kind of trouble?"

The Maou lifted a pale finger to scratch at his chin. "Hm . . . . Well, there was the time when I first arrived at the Demon Kingdom. I was confused as I had arrived there in an . . .unconventional manner. I was at the border and at the time there were some human villages within the country that hated the previous Demon Queen and it didn't help that they were being mislead by a traitor." Yuri engrossed himself in the memory, "Double-blacks are rare, you see. It's also a sure sign of a demon. So when I had arrived the villagers had already heard that the new King was going to be a double-black. It probably was a mistake on my part to approach the village but I had no idea what was going on." The Maou flinched as he remembered the bruises he had received that day, "Needless to say, they started throwing rocks and fruit at me until someone arrived. It wasn't until later that I figured out exactly why they were shouting at me."

The blonde shinobi looked over his charge with eyebrows knitted together, "What were they shouting?" Yuri rose an eyebrow at his sudden change in demeanor, but didn't question it.

"Demon. Devil. Monster. Things like that." The Maou tried to say it in a nonchalant manner but couldn't help a bit of sadness reach his voice. He had forgiven the villagers long ago, as was his nature. It still hurt. It hadn't stopped with them either. He had been called things like that in several human countries.

Naruto flinched at the answer, although he was expecting it. Unbidden, memories from his own childhood had sprung to the surface. Kakashi and Sakura glanced at him uncertainly, worry lacing the sides of their eyes. He shrugged at them, indicating that he was fine.

Yuri's worry wasn't hidden as much and he didn't bother to even try. "Naruto, are you okay?"

To say that the orange-clad shinobi was surprised was an understatement. Naruto was not used to anyone being concerned about him, at least not anyone who wasn't close to him. Despite Yuri being a friend, he was also a charge. Charges usually did not worry about him, as they assumed he, as a shinobi, didn't have feelings. Then there was the fact that the now brown-haired boy in front of him was virtually a stranger. Weren't strangers less . . .affectionate with other strangers? It was an odd feeling to know that Yuri cared about his well-being.

The last bit that confused and scared Naruto was that Yuri was a demon, albeit half-demon. Was he just being kind because of Kyubi? Could he sense him somehow? Naruto shivered at the thought of his charge having a freaky connection with the nine-tailed beast inside of him. After shaking himself out of the confusion of Yuri's worry over him, Naruto finally responded, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little surprised that they would do that, even though they live in your country."

The Maou's eyes softened, to which made everyone around them tense. A demon, much less a demon-king, should not be able to make that kind of expression. It wasn't unnatural on his face, quite the opposite. Such a soft expression only proved to strengthen the groups thoughts that Yuri was not really the demon king.

"People tend to fear what they don't understand." Yuri suddenly looked ten years older, "So much hatred is bred from that kind of fear. It's the same on the demon side." A sigh escaped his lips, "I know a couple of brothers. One is a half-demon, the other is a full demon. Conrad, the half-demon, is so kind. Especially towards his little brother. But the prejudice towards humans made Wolfram bitter towards his older brother." Yuri could feel his body grow heavier as the thought of his precious friends, "Wolfram loves Conrad, he really does. But he hasn't started showing it until recently and even now it's . . .diluted."

The Maou looked up at the sky to watch as a bird flew across them, "I've worked so hard to stop it, but sometimes it doesn't seem to be enough." He snorted, lost in thought and unaware now that the shinobi were still listening, "I wonder, can humans and demons truly coexist? Maybe I'm just a naive fool for thinking so."

Silence spread across the group. None of the shinobi offered the Maou an answer, but that was fine. He wasn't really expecting one.

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**Me: Ug, I hate writing these types of chapters. No ACTION! But a lot of bonding time, which is needed if I want this story to make sense. Don't worry there will be much more action in the next chapter. If not, then the one after that I promise.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Me: Ok, so I went over a few of the reviews and I came to one about Hinata that I never answered. Let me clear this up. She was NOT Fan-girling over Yuri. She was being dragged along by Ino and TenTen. I kinda figure her for a pushover, so I can imagine her doing this for the benefit of her friends. Another thing, I am a fan of NaruHina and I shall stay that way. Though I do tend to enjoy my fanfics romance less (unless they are centered around the romance). **

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That night, they set up camp in the forest. Everyone was oddly silent, contemplating over Yuri's words.

It was obvious to them that the Maou wasn't lying. They were shinobi, they could detect lies and truths easily. Then again, they didn't know how skilled Yuri was at lying. He _looked _like an amateur. However, looks can be deceiving. It wasn't usual that Shinobi would be so wary of their charge on an escort mission but the undeniable suspicion was pointed at Yuri. The only person who didn't seem on edge with him was Naruto. Maybe that was because the two found they had a lot in common.

They both liked ramen (Yuri a lot less then Naruto), they both had interesting stories to tell each other and above all else, they both understood what it was like to be shunned. Kakashi, seeing them become fast friends, was a little nervous of the fact that Naruto was becoming to attached to the charge. It was a painful truth to know that they may be forced to kill Yuri or even capture him for information, if he truly was the Demon King. Even if he wasn't they may have to interrogate him for answers, something he was sure the blonde would disapprove of.

Yuri pitched his own tent that he had received from the innkeeper, Ito-san. It surprised Kakashi at how well he was able to do so on his own and without complaint. In fact, the silver-haired shinobi had even caught the young Maou accidentally smash part of his hand with the hammer that was meant to hit the stakes. The cracking of bone could be heard, indicating that it was either broken or fractured. Instead of yelling out, Yuri determinedly bit his lip and seemingly shook off the pain. Kakashi knew better, however, as he watched Yuri wince every now and then.

What puzzled the copy ninja further was that he never mentioned it. Never asked for bandages or help from Sakura. (Though Kakashi wasn't sure if he knew she was a medic-nin) He simply went on through the night only nursing it when he thought the others weren't looking. This went on until Naruto mentioned it.

"Hey Yuri, what's wrong with your hand?"

The boy blinked before looking down at his hand as if he had forgotten about it. "Oh, uh, you noticed huh? I kinda had an accident with the hammer while putting up my tent. I was going to heal it when I finished, but then I got distracted by the food and well . . . ." He shrugged as if it weren't that big of a deal.

"You know medical ninjutsu?" Sakura asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

Yuri looked up at her in confusion. "Ninjutsu . . . ? Ah, no. At least I don't think so. I know a Demon technique for healing. Frankly though, I'm not very good at it and it's a little unstable whenever I use it on other people."

"What? Don't you know how dangerous it is to use an unstable medical technique on a patient?" Sakura screeched.

Yuri winced at the sound before responding, "Wait a minute! Although unstable, the healing technique isn't dangerous! All it really requires is the desire to heal and be healed."

Sakura paused before stomping over to the Maou with a determined look in her eyes. "Show me." She commanded.

Yuri, being terrified out of his wits, nodded numbly before placing his uninjured hand over the injured one. With a slightly concentrated look, he held on to the desire to heal the injury in front of him, but at the same time be healed of it. A green globe of light was in his hand, soothing the injury and resetting the bone.

Sakura stared at the green ball before placing her own green palm over it. It was obvious to her that the bone in his finger was healing. But how? His chakra was all over the place. There was no precise movement of it for it to command the bone to set itself. This puzzled Sakura greatly, but also made her excited. If she could learn this . . .then they could have people healed without knowing exactly what was wrong for them. The knowledge of the human body wouldn't be needed. Of course, this took up a hell of a lot more chakra then the normal healing standard, but this still had a lot of potential.

Just as Yuri was disabling the technique, Sakura had a vision. Behind Yuri, there was a woman with white hair and unseeing eyes. She smiled down at the pink-haired Kunoichi before disappearing from view.

"W-what was that?" She asked herself. Her teammates all swarmed around her as she swayed a bit.

Yuri looked on with a worried expression. "Um, are you okay Sakura-san?"

Sakura blinked before turning her attention to the young Maou, "What was that technique and who was that woman?"

Yuri's eyebrows shot up, "The technique is a standard healing technique for demons, as for the woman, what woman?"

The Kunoichi growled in frustration, "The white haired woman that was behind you! What was wrong with her by the way? She looked blind . . . ."

The Maou paled at Sakura's words. A white haired woman? His thoughts raced as his hand reached up to the familiar blue necklace around his neck. Everyone else seemed to notice this as they all turned their stares to Yuri. Kakashi was the first to recover, as he grabbed the shoulder of the Maou and turned him to face him, "Yuri, who was that woman?"

The boy shook his head and let his gaze travel to his feet. "T-that . . .I . . .I don't really know how to answer that." He started shaking himself out of his shock as he continued, "H-her name is Julia. Julia Von Wincott. Oh God(?). B-but she can't be here. She left. Or wait, maybe that's impossible. No one else has ever seen her before though. I-If you don't mind, this is pretty personal. Um, it's not dangerous knowledge or anything and well _she's _not dangerous either, so can we leave it at that?"

He looked up, his eyes hopeful. Kakashi let out a sigh before releasing the boy. There was no point in interrogating him now. He looked too shaken up to answer properly anyhow. Yuri said his thanks before retreating into his tent, not bothering to say goodnight. Three of the four shinobi sighed, not wanting to think about how long of a night it was going to be.

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**Me: I love Julia. I've always thought of Julia as a kind of role model to Yuri. Kinda like how Minato is to Naruto. A guide from the grave, I guess you could say. Though Julia technically IS Yuri, I think to think of them as two separate entities, with Julia as a Guide to Yuri. Minato is sort of the same way in regards to Naruto, but less directly. (Until you get to the point with Pain and Eight-Tails and the extra chakra being sealed in Naruto weirdness but I am SO not going into that)**


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